A typical day in the life of being a Mom.

I saw this article posted on a friends blog and LOVED it. It makes me really frustrated how the world thinks that being a stay a home mom isn't hard and that the only way to be accomplished is to work. I can't explain it better than this mother so I won't even try but let's just say we mother's don't just sit at home and eat bon bon's all day. I WISH. 

Carolyn:

Best friend has child. Her: exhausted, busy, no time for self, no time for me, etc. Me (no kids): Wow. Sorry. What'd you do today? Her: Park, play group . . .

Okay. I've done Internet searches, I've talked to parents. I don't get it. What do stay-at-home moms do all day? Please no lists of library, grocery store, dry cleaners . . . I do all those things, too, and I don't do them EVERY DAY. I guess what I'm asking is: What is a typical day and why don't moms have time for a call or e-mail? I work and am away from home nine hours a day (plus a few late work events) and I manage to get it all done. I'm feeling like the kid is an excuse to relax and enjoy -- not a bad thing at all -- but if so, why won't my friend tell me the truth? Is this a peeing contest ("My life is so much harder than yours")? What's the deal? I've got friends with and without kids and all us child-free folks get the same story and have the same questions.

Tacoma, Wash.

Relax and enjoy. You're funny.

Or you're lying about having friends with kids.

Or you're taking them at their word that they actually have kids, 

because you haven't personally been in the same room with them.

Internet searches?

I keep wavering between giving you a straight answer and giving my forehead some keyboard. 

To claim you want to understand, while in the same breath implying that the only logical conclusions are that your mom-friends are either lying or competing with you, is disingenuous indeed.

So, since it's validation you seem to want, the real answer is what you get. In list form. When you have young kids, your typical day is: constant attention, from getting them out of bed, fed, clean, dressed; to keeping them out of harm's way; to answering their coos, cries, questions; to having two arms and carrying one kid, one set of car keys, and supplies for even the quickest trips, including the latest-to-be-declared-essential piece of molded plastic gear; to keeping them from unshelving books at the library; to enforcing rest times; to staying one step ahead of them lest they get too hungry, tired or bored, any one of which produces the kind of checkout-line screaming that gets the checkout line shaking its head.

It's needing 45 minutes to do what takes others 15.

It's constant vigilance, constant touch, constant use of your voice, 

constant relegation of your needs to the second tier.

It's constant scrutiny and second-guessing from family and friends, well-meaning and otherwise. 

It's resisting constant temptation to seek short-term relief at everyone's long-term expense.

It's doing all this while concurrently teaching virtually everything -- language, manners, safety, resourcefulness, discipline, curiosity, creativity. Empathy. Everything.

It's also a choice, yes. And a joy. But if you spent all day, every day, with this brand of joy, and then, when you got your first 10 minutes to yourself, wanted to be alone with your thoughts instead of calling a good friend, a good friend wouldn't judge you, complain about you to mutual friends, 

or marvel how much more productively she uses her time. 

Either make a sincere effort to understand or keep your snit to yourself.

5 months

My little monster is 5 months old! I can't believe it! His hoodie says monster for sale or rent and it's actually his dads! Eric wore that when he was that age and I was so excited that Trent could finally fit into it well kind of. It's a little big but oh well. Here are the stats for Mr. Trent:


Weight: 18 pounds and in the 80% 
Height: 27 in and in the 88% 
He rolls over from stomach to back and back to stomach

He is ticklish EVERYWHERE. His chunky thighs, back, tummy. You start tickling him in any of those spots and he will just go crazy and start laughing. 

He LOVES food. Prunes, oatmeal, rice cereal, apple sauce. We are slowing adding more but probably not fast enough for him.

He is still so chill and will play either in his bouncy chair or under his play mat all day if he could.

He loves going for walks and I try to get him out as much as I can.

He talks non stop and has picked up growling. If he can't fit a whole toy in his mouth he will just start growling to try and fit it in.

He isn't the best sleeper (as you can see in the post below) BUT I am happy to report he is sleeping much better. I don't know what was going on but he is doing 4-5 hour stretches in between eating at night now.

He eats every three hours.

The only time he gets real fussy still is when he is hungry or tired which is a lot these days as I am transitioning him from being held for naps to his crib. He's not liking it AT ALL.

He kind of already has a little attitude. If I need to change him into a different outfit and he has a toy in his mouth and I take it away for a second he gets frumpy. 

He loves Elmo's world and anything electronic. I have a feeling I am going to have to limit his t.v. intake as he probably could watch it all day.

I could go on and on about my little man and it is so fun seeing his personality really starting to come out. Even though some days I am exhausted I can't get enough and just love him more and more every day. Being a Mom is the greatest!

Calling all Moms!

HELP! Trent is the sweetest happiest little boy but his sleeping habits are HORRIBLE. He is almost 5 months old and sleeps in his crib. He has slept in his crib since day 1 and at around 2 months he started sleeping pretty good through the night. Then we went on vacation when he was 3 months and the only way he would sleep at night was with us in our bed. I really didn't want to put him in bed with us but I had to get sleep. I came back from those vacations and I started a night time routine where I would feed him and rock him and then I would put him down. In the beginning it was a transition and a little rough but he started sleeping 4 hours and then would wake up and feed and then sleep 4 hours again. Then about 2 weeks ago he started sleeping from 10-5 and would feed and then would go from 5:30-7:30 or 8. Now this last week he has been waking up every 2 hours and when he does wake up he is wide awake. He plays with his blanket, his toes and looks around. I go in and put his pacifier in his mouth and touch his hands and he goes back to sleep, I leave the room and then 5-10 min later he wakes back up again and I go in and start the routine all over. Sometimes it takes me 4-8 times to do that until he falls back asleep and sometimes it only takes me 2 times. Last night I was up with him for 2 hours. This also happens when I put him down for the night. An hour after I put him down he wakes up and does the same thing where he will go back to sleep and then 5-10 min later he's awake. It's really frustrating that I can't just put him down for the night and then go to bed myself because a half an hour or an hour after I put him down he wakes up. I don't eat sugar before bed and I give him pro biotics every day. I am at my wits end as I just got mastitis and now have a really bad cold. Also he doesn't sleep in his crib for naps which isn't something that I planned and I was going to try and transition him but I have been sick and don't have the patience. He takes about 4 naps a day. Usually two 1 and a half hour naps and then 30-50 min naps for the other 2. I just am not sure what to do. I am so tired! I need suggestions/advice/ if this is normal. If this doesn't make sense it's because I am so exhausted/sick that I can't really think straight.